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Old Town Ale House
- Nearest Transit:
-
Sedgwick (Brown Line, Purple Line)
- Hours:
Mon-Fri, Sun 12 pm - 4 am
Sat 11 am - 5 am
- Parking:
- Street
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- No
- Price Range:
-
$
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Music:
- Juke Box
- Best Nights:
- Fri, Wed, Sat
- Happy Hour:
- No
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Smoking:
- No
- Coat Check:
- No
- Good For Dancing:
- No
- Ambience:
- Dive-y
- Has TV:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
131 reviews for Old Town Ale House
Review Highlights
131 reviews in English
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Review from Amy K.
Chicago, IL
12/21/2011
This is probably my all-time favorite bar in Chicago. The jukebox selection reads like someone's private jazz collection. The music is audible, but doesn't force you to yell to talk to your friends. The vibe is friendly. Bring cash and settle in -- you'll have a fantastic night.
...it also helps that the tamale guy stops by after midnight, too. -
Review from Tim R.
2/2/2012
I've been here a couple of times, and definitely prefer it "off-peak". It was pretty quiet on a week night.
The other reviews have already touched on the interesting artwork. I'd like a few of them as prints for my apartment, but don't think it would be appropriate when my parents visit.
The beer is just okay (both in selection and freshness / cellarmanship) , and the seats are uncomfortable. It's definitely one of the more casual places to go for a drink in the neighborhood. -
Review from T L.
Sacramento, CA
11/1/2011
A nice pit stop while out sight seeing in Chicago's Lincoln Park area. A fine dive bar with good prices, excellent service and some let me just say, very interesting art work of scandalized politicians in the act of being scandalized.
The bar tender was very helpful talking about things we'd want to see during our visit and was very timely filling up drinks. An enjoyable experience, and would have been more so if we hadn't been staying so far away. -
Review from Bri A.
Chicago, IL
12/15/2011
I think I found my new favorite after hours bar! My friends and I came on a Friday night around midnight or 1am. I don't quite remember because things were fuzzy at that point. We were able to get a table and ordered a $10 pitcher or PBR. We drank. We laughed. We made new friends and one enemy but that guy was grumpy and looking for trouble. I like how they play jazz music. It's a nice change from the usual music you hear at bars.
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Review from Mack C.
Chicago, IL
1/20/2012
Love this spot, been going to the ale house for years now. Love the smell, don't know why everyone goes to that? Love the jukebox of course and the paintings which are tasteful and elegant. Drink pricing is very reasonable and love the workers there. A home bar for those who just want to relax and don't take things too seriously. Thank you Ale House
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Review from Dakota F.
Indianapolis, IN
7/20/2011 2 Check-ins Here
This place is questionable.
To say it's a "dive" is an understatement.
It's one of the grimiest joints I've ever seen. Everything is rather dirty and the stale smell ain't fantastic.
However, the clientele is a fun group and the staff (doormen & bartenders) are a good bunch! -
Review from David G.
Chicago, IL
7/27/2011
Improv classes no longer seem complete without a nightcap of $10 pitchers of cheap beer. Right across North Avenue from Piper's Alley, Old Town Ale House is a regular spot for Main Stage performers and comedy students running across from The Second City. It's the less refined alternative to Corcorans, with second hand furniture and tables, gaudy paintings of naked politicians in suggestive positions, one featuring our favorite comedienne Sarah Palin and many other celebrities. I didn't like this place at first, but during my second or third visit it quickly grew on me.
The beer selection isn't that great, and the liquor isn't exactly top shelf. But the place doesn't really fill up like other local bars do. It's great to just sit there with friends and be rambunctious while the security guy keeps turning his head to make sure nobody is getting stabbed. -
Review from Justin B.
Chicago, IL
11/30/2011
This is hands down my favorite late night bar in Chicago. It is definitely a dive, but it has a lot of character and the people are always friendly. The jukebox is probably the best I have encountered. My only qualm with this place is that it is cash only.
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Review from Michelle M.
Chicago, IL
6/6/2011
Yup...I've been waiting for the day that I get the chance to go check out a place my dad use to slam drinks at.
Finally, a few weeks back I went and checked this cool dive bar. I had been invited to have dinner right next door and was waiting for my party when we had about 2 hrs to kill and decided to head to Old town for some drinks. This place is classic with everything hanging on the wall to the cool juke box that lays great tunes.
The staff is cool and prices are regular. -
Review from Ben B.
The single greatest jukebox in human history.
A million paintings of nude celebrities.
Open until the sun rises.
Perfection.Listed in: Best of Chicago
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Review from Mike K.
Chicago, IL
2/20/2011
What Liam Gallagher said when he first walked up to the mic the first night Oasis played Wembley in 2000 would be an accurate assessment of Old Town Ale House.
I've been to Old Town Ale House two or three times over the years. It seems I never stay all that long when I visit. I have my reasons.
The latest visit to Old Town Ale House was this weekend. The first thing you notice when you enter is the smell. It's fetid. The smell comes down on you and blankets you. Sure, you get acclimated to the smell and can't distinguish it anymore after five minutes, but you still know it's there. Then, when you head back to the loo, you encounter more smells that you notice since you're not yet acclimated to them. Everyone knows what a sewer smells like. Bang! Gross.
On top of the odors, you have to deal with the visual assault of the "art" on the walls. Hey, I have a sense of humor, but this is not only tasteless it's downright amateurish. People with head injuries on six hits of acid could do better. Maybe this art works better if the viewer himself is on acid? I don't know. I don't care who thinks it's all "cool" and that you have to "get it" to be down with it. Uh, no, you're wrong. It's all shit.
It's all too bad that the place smells and is a visual horror show, as the patrons are pretty laid back and friendly. I like the vibe of the people but not the venue. It's a waste.
Liam Gallagher is an idiot, but his first words at the mic at Wembley apply to Old Town Ale House:
"Shithole. It's about time they knocked the shit down."
Absolutely right. -
Review from Brent C.
Chicago, IL
4/1/2011
Old Town Ale House is the Crown Jewel of Chicago Neighborhood Dive Bars.
Awesome Jukebox. Decent Beer on tap. Shitty Beer on tap. Wood so dark it is blacker than my soul- both of which obtained their respective darkness from years of being soaked in booze.
Old Town Ale House, you lost a star because you got rid of the pinball machines.
Loving Old Town Ale House is like loving a woman with a broken nose. (Thank you Mr. Algren) -
Review from Serena S.
Chicago, IL
10/21/2011
This is my favorite bar in Chicago. :) Everyone wants to know your name, and turn you into an instant regular. The bartenders take care of you and the regulars are friendly comedian types. If all else fails, which it never does, you have artwork to keep you company.
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Review from Andrea c.
9/16/2011
i don't think i'm hip enough for this spot. i've been a few times w/friends after 2nd city shows and i have some who love it...and i just don't. it's fine...they serve alcohol which generally makes me happy, but i felt eyes on me because i wasn't a regular. also, the nudies just aren't my thing...if you're into it, i certainly won't judge you.
+good jukebox
+cheapskies
+proximity to 2nd city
+open late
-cash only
-my lack of hipness -
Review from Kevin R.
Chicago, IL
5/3/2011
This is a staple of the Old Town community. The last bastion to drink and not feel like you are being hounded by jerky people.
All reviews of this place holds true. What hasn't been said by other reviews?
Stick around until late after seeing a show at Second City. You'll see everyone from the stages there start to filter in about 1-2am.
This place does have 2 rules though: 1. Don't jump over the rails. 2. Use the jukebox. -
Review from bob a.
Flushing, MI
2/22/2011
We started early, but this stop was the point when it seemed like a good idea to start mixing in taquila shots with our regularly scheduled drinking.
Old Town Ale House is a dive bar for sure. We went on a Tuesday evening, probably around 10:00 - 10:30 and it was pretty empty. I didn't stick around really long enough to get a great feel for the place, but I can see getting really drunk here and having a blast. We decided to move on. Not everyone in the group was impressed with the nudy paintings. I thought they were kind of funny, and I can see them being funnier with the right crowd.
I'd go back, but I think the place would be more fun on a somewhat crowded night a little later than we showed up. -
Review from Charles A.
Chicago, IL
12/4/2010
The Old Town Ale House self-advertises as "Chicago's Premier Dive Bar," and thus sells itself so short. Yes, it's dingy and even degenerate. It's also a museum, an arcade, and a place to relax and people-watch or mingle. It's a gem - with cheap drinks. No bar I know of even comes close. Not in character or in vibrancy.
Not that the others lack so much as the Ale House just explodes with both. It has just the mix of storied history, present relevance, jazzy jukebox, artistic décor and gallons of alcohol - with plenty of raucousness and total impropriety to spare - to ensure that something interesting will happen almost every weekend. The UN should consider registering the Old Town Ale House as a World Heritage Site, it's a breed going rapidly extinct.
Obama stopped here on a sort of victory lap after his Grant Park presidential acceptance speech. Ron Howard was in a few months back for a few days every week when shooting some upcoming movie set in Chicago. The Second City crew from across the way have been regulars since the days of Belushi. At the Ale House, the future famous get drunk with the intellectual, witty, regular inebriates. It is the opposite of alcohol anonymous, people here famously succeed at staying drunk.
This is not to depict it as one of those sportsy, family restaurants with black-and-white autographed celeb shots plastering the walls. Instead, the owner's husband has beautifully befouled the interiors with paintings of lovable regulars and detestable politicians - about two-thirds portraiture, one third porno, including a naked governor's series (Blago, Palin, Sanford...) that caught a surprising amount of piqued mainstream press and livid conservative talkshow attention. The paintings at points overlay each other, as if in conversation, or in territorial battle over the remaining millimeters of wallspace.
The Ale House has something most other bars lack - a true individual identity, a life of its own, collected from fifty years of quirk and soul, from regulars and bartenders who practically grew up there. Grandfathered as a four a.m. bar, coming in sober on a brightly lit summer Sunday afternoon feels like an instant hangover. And yet you'll stay for the night. If alcoholism were a good thing, it would be the Old Town Ale House. -
Review from Johnny T.
7/7/2010
I know what Eliot Spitzer's wang looks like. I've also seen Sarah Palin's hoohoo. No, I haven't stared into the abyss that dares not speak its name. I have spent an evening at the Old Town Ale House. I've gotta admit: I didn't think Old Town had it in him (her? him). When I think of Old Town, I think of Art Fairs, Second City and the Trixie who barely missed barfing on my shoe outside of Suite Lounge. I had no idea that there was a small, dark, cool bar with loads of pictures of political figures engaging in acts of (deviant? Depends on who you ask) sex and various stages of nudity. After I got past my note-taking (be prepared is the Boy Scout's way), I settled in to enjoy the place.
I'll be back. (Relatively) cheap pints. Non-obnoxious crowd. A semi-crazy, but all-business old guy who roams the place and shakes you down for cash. And, jazz. Live jazz that reminded me of the two and a half years I lived in the Crescent City. Old Town Ale House gets the bulk of its stars for the music. Seriously. Between the heat, the dark wood, the dark atmosphere, the booze, the debauchery (real and imagined), I felt like I was back in the city that care forgot long before those damn levees broke and our country's leader forgot that he had to pretend to give a damn. Maybe it was just for that one evening. Maybe the scene was a fluke. But, for one evening, I was back and I loved it. I almost second-lined my way back onto North Avenue before I remembered that I was still in Chicago.Listed in: Steppin' Out, True Grit
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Review from gfiddy f.
Chicago, IL
8/27/2011
Fun political art & good beer.
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Review from Abby S.
Came back after over a year and this place is still a good time! I was a lot less intoxicated this time around, so my perspective of what this place is all about has changed slightly, but the overall aesthetic is still very much the same.
Instead of the juke box last night they had a live jazz trio, which was cool. It was also very loud and hard to hear the people at my table. So loud that we ended up leaving and going to a different loud bar :)
Still, it's a great Chicago spot and I will be back again the next time I'm in town!Listed in: Pure Perfection, Adults Only, Return Visits, Beer thirty, Late Night Hangouts
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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10/24/2009
Went there on my last visit to Chi-town upon my friend's recommendation and it was a blast. From… Read more »
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Review from Kevin N.
2/27/2008
Easily my new favorite bar in Chicago, why in the world did it take me so long to get in here? Well, for starters, I'm only in town periodically -- but that said -- kudos to Chi-town yelpers for the reviews of this place. It's not unusual to find a cool pub, but this place seems to bleed charm, from the regulars in locked arms, the ample selection of cold ones on tap, to the Second City alums characterized and interspersed with the campy vaudevillian nudes on the walls, Old Town Ale House has it going on.
Was news to me that the portraits were painted by the proprietor, and to that end, he seemed from my spot on the bar stool to be a guy unafraid of getting his hands dirty, bussing tables and chatting up regulars. Zero attitude here in a genuinely killer room. I can't wait --can't wait! -- to go back.Listed in: Pubs Across America
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Review from Beth P.
Chicago, IL
6/5/2008
A short story...
When I was a naive new transplant to the city, a dude and I stumbled into a dark, cozy, library/ shack/ drunken dream dive, (alliteration gets me hot) and had a crazy time. The next morning I reeled from the blurry, fun night before. Silly me, I thought it was the dude I was with that made the night so fantastic. Pssh, a bit later I realized it was actually the setting that caused my wonderful night to play out as it did. Folks, I give you... the Old Town Ale House.
Years later, this has become one of my favorite spots in Chicago. There is some sassy- maybe explicit- art on the walls, grizzled bar keeps, and funny drunks all around you. Head over after a second city show, when the bar you're at closes, or if you want to chill and get stupid drunk with the likes of Bethay. You'll find it an unpretentious riot in the otherwise snooty town of Old.
And she lived happily hydrated ever-after. -
Review from Candice G.
Naperville, IL
2/1/2010
I've been here a few times now but my last visit was certainly the most memorable and educational.
So it's a cold December night and the eve of rehearsals for the big Second city anniversary party, of which, my Bill Murray will be present. I know he's in town, I know he comes here, and I will find him. Okay, so I didn't find him this night but I have met him before so pshhhaw to you naysayers. We're meant to be together and no restraining order is gonna tell me any otherwise. PS- this is a total joke, as of yet, there is no restraining order involving me and Peter Venkman. Thankfully.
Anyhow, the bartender is great and only takes a back seat to the regulars. Not sure how to spot the regs? Take a look around. If you can match a patron with their painted pic on the wall, you've just scored a bingo. Any of the other pics look familiar? Yep, that's because they're of all our fave comedians... Gilda, Belushi (John not Jim- who is banned from OTAH), Dan Akroyd, Bill Murray... hands off you filthy whoore! He's mine! Being across the street with the famed Second City has given Old town Ale some pretty legendary clientele.
Okay, now on to the beer. In my opinion, both their draft and bottled beer selection is lacking. This is the kind of places that would blow the F up if they got some craft brews. I'm just pretty over all that Miller, Bud, and Corona stuff, ya know? And I think Bill Murray would agree.
I'll be be back. Maybe in search of Bill Murray, maybe because I love the regulars and the last time I went a boxing legend taught me sign language (yep, it was pretty awesome), maybe because my friend has made it her lifelong goal to be an official regular and get her photo on the wall, but mostly because I love the place and bleeds Chicago from the very core.Listed in: Beer Me, Betches., I (heart) Bill Murray
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Review from Jelena Z.
Updated - 11/6/2009
I lost my favorite scarf here. And I keep calling only to get a busy signal...
"And it's all your fault
I screen my phone calls
No matter who calls
I gotta screen my phone calls"
Sing it, Gwen! Yeah, they probably don't want to deal with Guinness guzzlers like myself, and that scarf is pretty awesome. I'd want to hold onto it too.
But I digress. I like this quaint borderline dive. The Guinness is poured properly, so exercise some patience my friend. And we already know there's tons of wall adornment to keep you uh, occupied.
So grab a cozy corner table and sink into the un-scene. And don't be fooled by the rough-around-the-edges appearance... those little tables are made for side-by-side canoodling. They won't kick you out 'til 4am people (5am on Saturdays)!
I still want my scarf back OTAH!Listed in: Cold, hard CASH., The Bar Exam, Enjoy Guinness., After Last Call., I'll take a side of ART,…
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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7/17/2009
This is a REAL bar. Which means, if you're looking for a shiny gastropub, you're lost: you won't… Read more »
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Review from Jenn H.
Chicago, IL
7/16/2008
I looked up and saw a vagina. And another. And another. "So, who created all this artwork?" I asked. The bartender told me the gentleman in the corner. I gazed upon an elderly man with gray hair who sat nursing a beer. He wasn't smiling or frowning...just drinking. And from the nature of the art he created, I assume he was thinking about pussy. Cunt. Vag. Whatever you call it, he is fond of them. Take a look at the walls. They are everywhere...in all their glory. Dying to gaze upon a painting of someones tongue in the holiest of holies....sit down at the bar and look up.
Not to dash anyone's fantasies, but the art isn't all vaginal...check it out for yourself. It's a pretty cool place to grab a few drinks and chill.Listed in: Happy hour can be an 11 a.m.…
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Review from Carol K.
5/31/2009
Another great Chicago 4am dive bar! Wandered into Old Town Ale House the other night and had a great time!
This place assaults your senses in a funny way with the whacked out sexual art all over the walls (seems the owner has found a hobby) the old worn wooden bar and stuff stuck. seriously, all over the place. If you hate clutter- this is not your bar!
Just a minute on the "art" though. Some subjects are recognizable- like Rod Blagojevich in prison orange or a naked Sarah Palin with all her assets on display. But the most popular subject seems to be (or so I'm told) the daytime bartendress "taking care of" her regular customers in ways that have nothing to do with pouring a cold one. Wow- it must be an interesting place during the day.
The jukebox seems to be stocked with only jazz, a couple of C & W songs and that's it. So you sit in this dive bar listening to great jazz from the jukebox. A great contrast. A great jukebox.
Beer is cheap ($3.50 Miller Lites) and bartenders, who tell me they don't start smiling til Midnight (caught you smiling once John!) serve it quickly as they strike up a friendly conversation..
The people mix is constantly changing- from the day time regulars (hey- this place is open at 8am so if you need a beer . . . . . ) to the nighttime crowd, to the crazy, drunk late nighters that pack this place after 2am. It was a constantly changing stream of fun!
If you drive- there is a garage across the street or a lot around the corner on Wells. Street parking is tough but you might find a spot on one of the side streets.
Bring cash as they don't take plastic, smile and wink at the bouncer (he's nicer than he looks!) and pull up a seat at the bar. Old Town Ale House and it's interesting artwork will have you feeling like a regular in no time. -
Review from Jenny T.
Chicago, IL
7/9/2008
Old Town Ale House-good for a drink with friends, baaaad for a first impression. After recently moving into Old Town I was excited about the all the new places to try and was pointed towards this dive bar. I decided to go with some people I didn't know very well and boy were we in for a surprise.
The walls are covered in artwork created by the owner. Mostly they are portraits of regulars or other random, obscure things (a baby smoking a cig--kinda looking like baby lil wayne). However, there are some disturbing pictures that get funnier and funnier the more and more drinks you have. I don't even think I can give a description that could describe the strangeness of this place.
The jukebox, however, is excellent. There is generally good music on all the time, so that is something that can either spark a conversation or keep one going. I didn't think the prices were all that great-I thought they were pretty standard for the city. I think this place is wonderful to come with old friends or people with a good sense of humor, but I wouldn't be dragging grandma or grandpa or a republican into this bar any day.Listed in: Good Eats & Good Fun in the…
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Review from Kaitlyn V.
Oak Park, IL
12/30/2010
Cash only!!
Just a nice, cozy bar... plastered with sexually explicit pictures of politicians. I wouldn't think of it as unique, but in a city full of gastropubs, speak-easys, lounges, sports bars and clubs, being "just a bar" has become distinctive! Great place for a casual beer or two. -
Review from Paul V.
Las Vegas, NV
11/13/2008
Come for the drinks, stay for the insane characters that populate this Chicago istitution. The best juke box in The Windy City. When the two o'clock bars shut down come here till four a.m., Chicago style, baby, pure Chicago style!
Old Town Ale House is right across the street from the famed "Mecca of Comedy", The Second City and services the comedian and alcoholic (not mutually exclusive) community very well. This is my personal "base of operation" when I'm in Chicago.
WARNING:
John and Pat make the stiffest drinks in town.
DOUBLE WARNING:
If you are a cute guy or even an ugly one, Mark, the burly and intimidating doorman (he's actually a big teddy bear, emphasis on the "bear") will try to kiss you. Oh, what the hell, it's 4am!
TREBLE WARNING:
If I see you there, I might just buy you a drink, or 3! -
Review from Tiffany N.
Denver, CO
8/5/2008
Oh, Old Town Ale House, won't you move to Denver? I know the perfect spot for you to reside. And I can promise you that I personally know dozens and dozens of Denverites that would love to enjoy a refreshing beer or cocktail under the burlesque-like art that lines your walls. We won't even complain that you are cash only. In fact, many of Denver's favorites are still cash only, too. See? You'll fit right in!
I like everything about you from your jukebox to the artwork depicting a man bending a lady over what appears to be a kitchen table. If fact I tried to buy one of your pieces, but wasn't allowed since the previous owner that used to do the paintings is no longer around. I did get a nice replica in the form of a poster though thanks to the kindly new manager. He can come, too. Denver weather is much better than Chicago, especially in the winter.
Anyway, until you come to me I'll continue to go to you for late night drinks every time I'm in the Windy City.
Love,
Tiffany C -
Review from David R.
1/29/2010
Let's see, Saturday night, fleeing the Halsted corridor to the south and east...what are our options? Old Town Social has a line up the block and I don't wait in line for bars. Moving right along.... McGinny's Tap is packed to the gills and loud as fuck. No thank you. Continuing east...Well, we can always use O'Brien's as a last resort but no way am I going to Burton Place.... What's this? Old Town Ale House? Hey, this looks decent--open the door and poke your head in.... Ahhh, like an oasis in the desert! NOT crowded, NOT loud, NOT filled with pretty assholes or ex-Kappa Sigs.
A toothless old man working the front door gave us a table in the window alcove "Reserved for Parties of 5 or more." They play charming old-timey music such as jazz and Sinatra. The paintings and the yellowish quality of the light make this feel like a Parisian cabaret. I'm not sure about the beer prices; I paid $20.50 for a Harp, a Smithwick's, and three Bud Lights...maybe 5, 5, and 3.50?
Anyway, I wouldn't make this a destination, but it's a great option in the neighborhood. It's not a dive, it's simply an older place with some character and no pretension. -
Review from Amy H.
11/2/2009
In a sea of Old Town yuppie bars, the Old Town Ale House remains a simple bar for the working man. Where else can you drink your beer and gaze upon drawings of naked women (including Sarah Palin) and Blago about to receive a cavity search? Where else can a group of friends discuss the Apocalypse and the Rapture on a Friday night? Only at Old Town Ale House.
There is also plenty of seating, a diverse crowd, and a pin ball machine for entertainment. -
Review from Lizzie N.
Chicago, IL
4/27/2010
A great local tavern!
I just went to the Old Town Ale house for the the first time. What a gem! The bartender was friendly and not at all annoyed by my attempt to pay with a card (note* cash only). A regular chatted me up at the bar and told me a bit about the place - local artwork, ect. Everyone was friendly and drinks were affordable (pitcher of Smithwicks for $15).
Cannot wait to go back again and again! -
Review from Elizabeth F.
Las Vegas, NV
6/27/2011
Interesting wall art. Wrist-slitting jukebox.
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Review from Brandon W.
Chicago, IL
9/30/2008
I just didnt feel a good vibe here. It is a nice location, but the provacative pictures (which I am not opposed to) just make the place look really childish - but I guess that is the appeal to most people.
As well, considering the location, the fact that they did NOT accept credit card is really a turn off. I could turn the corner, go down wells and get a better value - and use my credit card (i try to carry as little cash as possible)..
Drinks are expensive - service is a bit shotty.. and if a place ever seemed to try to hard to be a neighborhood bar with a twist, this is it. -
Review from Alyssa H.
Chicago, IL
6/6/2009
Old Town Ale is a Tom Waits song come to life.
I've only been with friends, but some night I have a burning desire to enter alone, sit at the bar with my head down and a book of Charles Bukowski poetry, order two fingers of cheap whiskey and raise my head only occasionally to nod along with the regulars who often make comments like, "Yeah, last night I made it all the way home but couldn't find my keys so I slept in the giant flower planter outside my apartment."
Be nice to the bartenders. Order a beer. Admire the artwork which is mostly pornographic, often awe-inspiring and only slightly resembles finger-painting. Put something you've never heard on the juxebox and if you're lucky enough to get a seat at the window watch the world go by. Wait for the Tamale Guy. Delicious.
Oh, if only I was a gravel-voiced old girl who wore my life on my face. I'd fit in perfectly. -
Review from Carol M.
9/17/2008
I don't know why everyone keeps saying this place is cheap, but it's snot. $3.50 for a PBR?! really?!
The art in here is like it's trying to be all sexy and provocative, but the fact that it looks like a 12 yr old painted it is enough to make me feel all creepy inside.
There's better dives to go to if that's what you're lookin for...... -
Review from Vaughn C.
Chicago, IL
9/17/2007
It's less of a dive than it is drinking in your father's study: dusty books on shelves from floor to ceiling, a dazzling selection of great jazz on the jukebox, and paintings of his friends copulating with hussies decorating an entire wall.
By far, it's the best drinking hole in Old Town with its normal prices, great atmosphere, and 4am closing. Vintage charm can't be manufactured and this bar proves that with aces.Listed in: Places Where I've Barfed
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Review from Cayce M.
Chicago, IL
12/7/2009
This is my favorite bar in all of Chicago!
I've been a patron of OTAH for years. What to say other than this place is the tits! I feel this is an entirely appropriate statement given the nature of the decor.
I have many many fond memories (and a few I've forgotten) from this fine establishment. The regulars range from harmless and hilarious, to potentially pervy - it takes all kinds, right? This place can fill up like a sardine can, and then the bartenders are hard to get a hold of. In general the bartenders are friendly and don't mind a chat if the place isn't crammed.
OTAH attracts a wide pull of people; young professionals, second city students and performers, older folks (mostly of the man variety), and the odd out-of-towner. The jukebox is the best in the city and they have a live jazz set on sunday or monday nights that are choice.
Go on a week night to feel it out or a weekend to get caught in the undertow. This place is usually best if you can go early enough to snag a table especially if you're with a larger group. Be prepared to come out with the sun so bring your favorite shades and give OTAH a whirl. -
Review from Marko M.
Chicago, IL
11/20/2010
I live nearby and really liked going to this place to start a night or have a chat with friends. Until I went on a weekend.
A couple old friends were visiting from South America so we thought to start at this quirky dive to catch up a little. It was early in the night so the place was half empty. Got a pitcher and tried to sit down, but NO! How dare we ask to sit down not being a party of 5 or more?!
Now okay, I get the reasoning, but there were like 4 tables open, and the bar seats were all full. Even after we offered to get up if a bigger group comes in, the dude brushes us off and tells us to stand. To stand in the middle of an empty bar floor, juggling our pitcher and glasses! wtf?
I turn away frustrated (I may have muttered something about yelp ;) so he cames back up to us. I thought okay, he probably realized what a douchebag he was. But NO - he goes on to offer us some helper chair (one!) right in front of two open tables starring right back at us. Chugged the beers and got the hell out of there.
Maybe it's just me, but something about a douchey club attitude doesn't click with a cozy neighborhood bar for me. Out searching for a new spot.
